Super Rugby: Team of the Week

Now that the dust has settled in the south, we thought it was only right to hand out some praise to the stars of Super Rugby, Round Six.

Now that the dust has settled over in the southern hemisphere, Planet Rugby thought it was only right to hand out some praise to the stars of Super Rugby, Round Five.

Without further ado, here comes our offering - be sure to send in your own 15-1 team selections.

15 Louis Ludik (Sharks): Was one of the Sharks' top performers in their demolition of the Rebels. Ludik's surges into the back-line saw him scoring a brace of tries. He beats the fast-improving Israel Folau, who was sensational on attack for the Waratahs against the Blues.

14 Gio Aplon (Stormers): The diminutive wing got the Newlands faithful off their feet with a fine solo try and always looked dangerous with ball in hand. He gained 114 metres on attack, beating 10 defenders in the process.

13 Rene Ranger (Blues): Another scintillating attacking display from the All Black secures his spot in our team for the third time this season. Ranger impressed in his side's loss to the Waratahs, making 43 metres, with four defenders beaten and he also secured two turnovers.

12 Rob Horne (Waratahs): Combined well in midfield with Adam Ashley-Cooper and put in a solid defensive effort against a dangerous Blues back-line with 12 tackles made. Honourable mentions go to the Reds' Ben Tapuai and Francis Saili of the Blues.

11 Digby Ioane (Reds): Crossed the advantage line at will with several attacking runs in the Reds' victory over the Bulls. Ioane gained 88 metres, beating eight defenders. He gets in ahead of the Western Force's Alfie Mafi and Gerhard van den Heever of the Stormers, who did well for their teams.

10 Quade Cooper (Reds): Was back to his best against the Bulls, scoring a try and doing the groundwork before offloading to Jono Lance for the Reds' first five-pointer. Cooper made 92 metres, managed three offloads and won a crucial turnover. Bernard Foley of the Waratahs and Aaron Cruden of the Chiefs are both unlucky after impressive showings.

9 Cobus Reinach (Sharks): Seems to have cemented his place in the Sharks starting XV with another polished display. Reinach scored a try and gained 104 metres but also impressed with his slick service to Patrick Lambie.

8 Kieran Read (Crusaders): Proved once again why he is widely regarded as the best number eight on the planet. Read gained 100 metres on attack against the Kings and won six balls in the line-outs, including one on his opponents' throw.

7 Matt Todd (Crusaders): This was a difficult decision as Heinrich Brussow also impressed for the Cheetahs but Todd gets the nod for a solid shift against the Kings. He carried well and was busy on defence, making 11 hits.

6 George Whitelock (Crusaders): An industrious performance was rewarded with a hat-trick of tries in the win over against the Kings. He also defended well, particularly in the game's latter stages when the result was already secured. Stormers bruiser Rynardt Elstadt and the Cheetahs' Lappies Labuschagne also performed well.

5 Andries Bekker (Stormers): Deservedly won the man-of-the-match award after a fine all-round effort. Bekker scored two tries, won his fair share of line-out ball and made 10 tackles to play a major part in helping the boys from Cape Town hand the previously unbeaten Brumbies their first defeat of the campaign.

4 Brodie Retallick (Chiefs): Got through plenty of hard graft against the Highlanders. Retallick cleaned out the rucks with ferocity and led his side's defensive effort with an incredible 21 tackles.

3 Wiehan Herbst (Sharks): Stood in for Springbok hardman Jannie du Plessis and impressed with a solid scrummaging display and some big hits on defence. He beats out the Waratahs' Paddy Ryan who did well in his primary duties against the Blues.

2 Kyle Cooper (Sharks): Got a rare start and made full use of his opportunity, scoring a try and crossed the whitewash for a deserved try against the Rebels. Just edges out the Blues' James Parsons who worked hard and also scored a try in his side's defeat to the Waratahs.

1 Beast Mtawarira (Sharks): The entire Sharks front row makes this week's team after their demolition of the Rebels in the scrums. As the senior player, Mtawarira was at the forefront of that effort and he also did well on defence, especially at close quarters in the rucks and mauls.